


serendipity

by amajikiis



Category: The Sandlot (1993)
Genre: Best Friends, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Idk what i'm doing, a lot of ocs ig, forced into this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-14 14:22:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29793237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amajikiis/pseuds/amajikiis
Summary: reyna gonzalez is well aware of a lot of things. she calls it being observant. for instance, when scott smalls moves into her neighborhood during the summer of '62, she can already tell that they're going to be in for a long ride. another player on the sandlot, problems with the beast, and an addition of feelings she didn't think were reciprocated, what do you get? not an easy arithmetic problem, that's for sure. but reyna knows that it'll be a summer to remember. after all, she wasn't looking for anything else.
Relationships: Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez/Original Female Character





	1. how do i catch it?

"BERTRAM!" Benny called out, hitting the baseball towards him. It was your average day at the sandlot. The sun was still somewhat high in the sky, because it was summer. School had just let out a couple hours ago, on this sunny Friday afternoon. It was the last day of ninth grade for Benny and Reyna. It was the last day of the eighth grade for Ham, Yeah-yeah, and Bertram, and the last day of the seventh grade for Squints, and Timmy. Tommy was still in fifth grade.

Without even asking, she knew that none of them were at all ready to be freshmen or eighth graders after summer was over. It was like an unspoken vow between all of them that they had to make this summer last, and it had to be the best one ever.

Reyna's other friends, Kiara Robinson, DeAndre Carter, and Julia Cruz weren't into baseball, not even remotely. Kiara didn't even like sports too much, except swimming. DeAndre was a basketball player, and the best Reyna knew, as he liked to remind her. Julia was a volleyball player, and Reyna knew Yeah-yeah had liked her since he was in fifth grade.

The boys and Reyna immediately ran to the sandlot. She had raced Ham, taunting him that he couldn't beat her. It got a reaction out of him, he ran until his face turned purple and he was gasping for breath. But of course, Reyna had arrived a couple minutes prior to his dramatic entry.

"Come on, Bertram!" Squints yelled, as Bertram scrambled to catch the ball in his mitt. Bertram threw the ball to Timmy, who gloved it cleanly, who threw it back to Ham. Benny then hit the ball towards Yeah-yeah, who threw it to Timmy, who sent it back to Ham.

"Squints!" Benny yelled before hitting the ball in his general direction.

"I got it!" Squints yelled as he ran forward to catch the ball.

"Nice catch Squints!" Reyna called out.

"Yeah."

There were a couple more rounds of catching and passing. The fence creaked obnoxiously and the Beast growled louder. He was more active these days, what with the sun out for longer and more balls flying into his territory.

"Come on, Benny! Hit a homer!" One of the boys called out.

Kenny winds up, almost throwing a perfect fastball. It thuds against Benny's bat, soaring across the sky, towards a small kid standing near the fence.

"Watch out!" Ham screamed, pulling his mask up.

The kid tried to catch it in vain, yelling out in pain as it hit him. The boys all burst out into raucous laughter, the sight amused them greatly. A boy who didn't know how to catch? Hilarious. Benny shook his head.

Reyna rolled her eyes in disgust, "Shut the fuck up!" The boys barely paid her any attention, her words getting lost in the rounds of laughter

"Okay, I'll get it!" the kid yelled, as he chased after the ball which had rolled behind a bush, near the fence.

"We are waiting," Ham called out mockingly. She shot him a disapproving look, but he didn't see it. There was no reason to make fun of the kid's pitiful attempts at throwing.

The boy tried to fix his stance or something like that and Benny dropped his gaze to the floor as he shook his head, almost as if he didn't want to watch the outcome. The rest of the boys all yelled impatient 'come on!'s. The boy attempted to throw the ball but didn't let go until it was too late. The ball dropped and rolled one or two feet in front of him, pitifully, as if it too were mocking him.

The boy grimaced as he ran from the field in embarrassment as the rest, except Benny rolled around on the ground laughing so hard they were shaking. The laughter carried and Reyna was sure Mr. Mertle could hear it.

"Que te folle un pez!" Reyna yelled at them, once the poor kid disappeared from view. Pendejos. Benny smiled briefly.

"Y'know we can't understand everything you say when you speak Spanish," Squints spoke up after they had stopped laughing their asses off.

"She said to get fucked by a fish, guys," He translated for them.

"Whaddya mad for? The kid is hopeless," Ham spoke up.

"You were that hopeless too, when you were younger!"

"Yeah when we were three!" Timmy spoke up.

"Yeah when we were three!" Tommy copied.

"I know for a fact that none of you could hold a baseball properly till you were five, or six. 'Cept for Benny, y'all should be ashamed of yourselves." Reyna told them angrily.

"Why're you not mad at Benny? All he did was stand there and look disappointed!" That's a good point Bertram made. She should be mad. He didn't even properly defend the kid. Well, neither did she, but she tried. That's what counts, right?

"On second thought, you're right."

"I am?" Bertram, himself looks surprised.

"I'm mad at all y'all dumbasses but let's just get back to playing."

✰

"I'm the Great Bambino!" Hamilton Porter spoke with a fake cigar in between his lips on a sunny Saturday morning outside of Vincent's drugstore.

"What?" They kids all asked in unison. They couldn't understand him with the thing stuck in his mouth.

"I'm the Great Bambino!" Ham repeated, this time a little clearer.

"What?" We asked again. They sort of knew what he was hinting at but just wanted him to say it again.

"No one can understand your dumbass." 

Taking the stupid thing out of his mouth, Ham reiterated his previous statement, "I'm the Great Bambino!"

"You sure about that, Ham?" Reyna asked while the others went, "Oh."

"Who's that?" A new voice spoke up. They were so lost in our conversation that we failed to notice that Benny had arrived with a new kid in tow. The new kid was sporting a dark purple bruise on his left eye, Reyna noticed.

"What?"

"What did he say?" Ham asked in disbelief, scanning the rest of our faces.

"What were you born in a barn, man?" Bertram asked condescendingly.

"Yeah yeah, what planet are you from?"

"You never heard of the Sultan of swat?"

"The Titan of terror?" Kenny asked a little slowly.

"The Colossus of clout?" Timmy asked.

"The Colossus of clout?" Tommy echoed after his older brother.

"The King of crash, man," Benny interjected. Reyna kept quiet, surely the poor kid would've figured out who Babe Ruth was by now. It's not like he was living under a rock his entire life.

"Oh yeah! The Great Bambino! Of course! I thought you said the great bambi," the new kid mustered up with as much enthusiasm he could produce.

"Buen salvo," Reyna mumbled. Benny grinned at her, subtly nodding his head in agreement.

"The wimpy deer?" Ham asked menacingly. It was quite funny to see him try to act all tough. He was about as intimidating as a little piglet, squealing after its mother.

"Yeah, I guess. Sorry," the kid mumbled, scratching the back of his neck.

"Anyways, Scott. That's Timmy and Tommy Timmons," Benny gestured to them with his glove.

They both spit on the ground, in an attempt to intimidate Scott.

"Mike 'Squints' Palledorous." Squints spit also, in bravado.

"Alan McClellan- we call him 'Yeah-yeah'." Yeah-yeah decided to jump on the bandwagon and spit on the ground too.

"Bertram Grover Weeks." Bertram was just as scrawny as the kid with Benny, 'cept he was much taller and could hold his own in a game.

Cue another spit.

"Kenny DeNunez, Reyna Gonzalez, and Hamilton Porter."

Two more balls of spit join the collection on the ground.

"We call him Ham. Guys, this is Scott Smalls." Benny continues on, introducing the scrawny kid with him, sporting a black eye.

"Hi," Scott timidly waved.

"Yeah, um, well, he's gonna play with us 'cause he makes ten. Now we've got a whole team. We're wasting time. Let's go to the sandlot." He didn't look impressed with Squints' second spit. And Benny always said anything not related to baseball was a waste of time.

"Benny, it's nine o'clock," Squints protested.

"Why did you bring him, Benny?" Ham growled.

"Because there's always room for more. We've got more than a whole team now."

"Yeah, yeah, so would my sister but I didn't bring her," Yeah-yeah interjected, loudly chewing on his gum.

"That's a shame, I would've loved to play with Molly. Maybe you should bring her next time," Reyna told Yeah-yeah with a smirk.

"With nine guys and a girl, we've got a whole team and extra, Yeah-yeah," Benny shot back.

"No, with Elzwerner we had a whole team. Elzwerner could catch! And throw!" Ham spit out. Reyna couldn't necessarily deny that. Elzwerner had moved away before summer had started and he was almost as good as Benny. Kiara liked to argue that he was just as good as Benny; she liked to keep record of stats and would ramble on and on about it to Elzwerner, who actually liked to listen to her. He appreciated her calculating his stats, along with everyone else's.

"Come on, Benny, man. He ain't game! You saw the way he threw," Kenny spoke up. Having had enough of this, Reyna decided to hang back so Scott could catch up with her, so they could walk together.

"You already fill up all the positions, since Elzwerner moved to Arizona. Besides, we got Reyna, we don't need him," Squints spoke up.

"Well, now, we get to rotate more positions. I need the practice guys."

"You're the best on the team! You don't need no practice!"

"You're the best, man," Bertram tried to reason.

"C'mon, Benny, man, the kid is an L seven weenie!"

"Yeah, yeah, Oscar Mayer even. Foot long! Dodger dog! A weenie!" More laughter, that Scott tried to ignore. But she could see his falling face; he was so disappointed and sad.

At this, Benny whirled around, to watch Scott. He looked surprised that she was walking with him. Reyna was sick of the guys making fun of him.

"What're you laughing at, Yeah-yeah? You run like a duck." Benny put Yeah-yeah in his place. Reyna smiled, her eyes lighting up in amusement, that's my best friend right there.

"'kay, 'kay, but I'm, I'm-"

"Part of the game right?" Yeah-yeah nodded. "Then how come, he don't get to be?"

"'Cause he's weak."

"He can't even catch!"

"Man, base up, you blockheads." With that, he turned around and walked towards Smalls and me. Squeezing his shoulder, she gave him a reassuring look as she went to take her place. Benny tells Smalls to take left center. Reyna normally played shortstop or as an outfielder. However, with Scott taking left center, and all the other positions taken, Reyna decided to wait her turn to bat.

"Yeah-yeah get two!" Benny called out to him as he hit the ball in Yeah-yeah's direction. Yeah-yeah quickly managed to glove the ball, then threw it to Bertram who threw it to Timmy, and back to Ham.

"Nice!" Ham called out appreciatively, and she nodded in agreement. They had practiced throws and catches like this and it had paid off. Reyna could see the look of awe on Smalls's face and it amused her greatly. Smiling to herself, Reyna could only hope that he wouldn't mess up again today.

"Smalls! Throw it to second!" Benny said before hitting the ball in his direction.

"Okay!"

We all watched in anticipation as the ball soared towards him. He took three steps back before landing flat on his ass with a grunt, the ball landing two feet behind him. Reyna could see Benny's face fall in disappointment.

"Told you Benny, told you," Ham said.

"Shut the fuck up, Ham." Reyna jumped in. Every now and then, it would do everyone good if Ham could learn how to be quiet for once in his life.

"C'mon, Benny, why'd you do that?" Kenny whined.

"A square, Benny! Kid's a square!" Squints pulled off his glasses, gesturing to Smalls with them as he chased down the ball which had rolled behind the bushes. The guys were starting to get on Reyna's nerves and it wouldn't be long before someone, preferably DeAndre, had to hold her down so she wouldn't beat their asses.

'It's no use, Reyna, you gotta hit 'em with your words. You're a real talker if you try,' DeAndre would tell her.

"Squints, shut up before I make you a square." 'Ooh's filled the air. Smalls came scrambling back with the ball, trying to figure out how to throw it, before giving up and running all the way to second base, and straight up handing it to Kenny.

"What are you doing?" and "I don't believe this" filled the silence accompanying his run.

Kenny stared in disbelief before shooting Benny multiple disbelieving looks. Before Benny could, Reyna ran to where Smalls was standing.

"You can throw it, right?" Reyna asked him, when Benny was a foot away.

Scotty took off his shit hat, a woeful expression on his face, "No, I can't. I don't know how."

To Benny he said, "Thanks for taking me, but I think I'd better go." He tried to walk past, but Reyna quickly interrupted his walk.

"Kid, you think too much." Reyna told him. It was an observation she had made; he seemed like the type to overthink everything. Reyna didn't overthink, because who knows when that chance is gonna come back? Life's too short, so you may as well enjoy it while it lasts.

"I bet you get straight A's and shit, huh?" Benny told Smalls with a stupid grin.

"Not that there's anything wrong with that," Reyna threw a pointed look in Benny's direction. He grinned at her, throwing me an 'I surrender' look before turning back to Smalls who was starting to look as if he was watching a tennis match.

"No, I got a B once," Smalls answered earnestly. "Actually, an A minus, but it should've been a B."

Man, who the hell overthinks like that? You got an A, just accept it and don't ask for anything less. Reyna would kill to get A's without trying like Kiara does, but they can't all be crazy smart and have a thing for memorizing stats of baseball players they like.

"Man, this is baseball! You gotta stop thinking. Just have fun."

"He means, if you were having fun, and not over-thinking you would've caught that ball."

Smalls looked down at his feet for a moment.

Suddenly, Benny speaks up, "You ever have a paper route?"

"Helped a guy once," Smalls pipes up, a hopeful expression lighting up his face.

"We can work with that," Reyna said, knowing at once where Benny was going with this.

"Well, chuck it like you would chuck paper," Benny said, gesticulating as he spoke.

Gently grabbing one of his arms, Reyna moved it as she spoke, "When your arm gets here, just let go. Just let go." With that, Reyna started to walk back to her earlier position.

"It's that easy," Benny adds. With that, Reyna turned to walk towards her previous position.

Before Reyna could even take two strides, Smalls asked, "How do I catch it?"


	2. what are best friends for?

THE guys weren't wrong about Smalls not knowing a lot, but he's not entirely hopeless.

Simultaneously, Benny and Reyna both turned around—Reyna with a look of barely concealed shock.

"Just stand there, and stick your glove up. I'm here, I'll take care of it." When he spoke, his nose scrunched up, and it was the cutest thing ever, in Reyna's opinion. She decided to quickly get back to her position as Benny stood at bat.

"About time, guys, my clothes are going out of style!" Squints yelled.

"They never were in style!" Reyna retorted.

"Shut up," Squints said.

"Told you, Benny," Ham said.

"Smalls! Throw it to second!"

"Okay!"

Benny spit on the ball for good luck, and normally, Reyna would outright tell him that it's fucking disgusting but they needed all the luck we can get right now.

Smalls scrunched his eyes tightly and raised his hand in the air.

Benny hit the ball, and it soared in the air, as the rest of the boys looked on in disbelief or simply shook their heads, no, he's not going to catch it. The ball landed in Smalls's mitt.

"Yeah, all right!" Benny was ecstatic.

Reyna pumped a fist in the air, Smalls had done it! Squints took off his glasses, and rubbed them on his shirt, and put them back on, as if that was going to help him believe what he was seeing. Smalls threw the ball perfectly to Bertram, on second, and his excited response was, "Okay! Let's play some ball!"

"Alright! I knew, all the time," Kenny said as he caught the ball and threw it to Ham.

Reyna snorted, "Sure you did, DeNunez. Sure."

Smalls and Benny shared a thumbs up, as he let out another excited, "Yeah!" Because things were finally going all right.

✰

"I'll show you some more, tomorrow," Ham told Smalls as the gang walked back home together.

"Okay!"

"Ya did good today," Ham told him before walking up to his house.

"Yeah. 'Kay, talk to you tomorrow, man," Benny said. "Bye, Smalls."

"Bye, see you tomorrow." Benny turned around, and Reyna waited outside of his house for him; Jimena, his little sister, wanted to hang out with her today.

"Wait! Benny, your glove!" Smalls spoke.

"Keep it, man."

"Thanks!" Smalls replied, excitedly.

"Oh yeah! Smalls!" As Benny ran back to talk to Scott again, Reyna decided to head inside. Almost immediately, she gets attacked by a little ball of pure energy, Jimena. Jimena screamed in delight and had rushed forward to hug Reyna as fast as she could. Mrs. Rodriguez stepped forward to greet Reyna, "Hola, cariño."

"Hola, tia," Reyna replied, out of respect. She didn't like it when adults told her to call them by their first names. It made her uncomfortable. Also, having known Benny's mom for a long time, it was just better to acknowledge her as an aunt.

As Reyna sat in Jimena's room, listening to her tell Reyna stories about the biggest gossip of the third grade, Benny decided to finally come in.

"So, what ya guys talkin about?" Benny sat on Jimena's bed and leaned forward on his elbows.

Jimena giggled, "Girl talk."

"Of course, of course! So Jimena, who's the cutest guy in the third grade? You better not say Tommy, he's mine! We're meant to be!" Benny surprisingly said the whole thing with a straight face and a high pitched voice. He only broke character at the end, when Reyna began laughing uncontrollably.

Jimena giggled again, "Stop acting stupid!"

Benny fake gasped, "What ever do you mean?! Rey, who's the cutest guy to play on the Sandlot?"

Reyna pretended to think, a finger on her chin as she hummed thoughtfully. "I'd have to say it's... Elzwerner. Shame he moved to Arizona."

She laughed after she spoke. Of course it wasn't Elzwerner who she thought was the cutest, Kiara had liked him first, still did actually, but why would she want to suffer the humiliation when she admitted the truth?

Benny pouted cutely. "So why didn't you make a move when he was still here, huh?"

"Kiara likes him. And I was joking. I don't actually think Elzwerner is the cutest."

"So who is?" He sure seems excited to know.

Unbeknownst to Benny and Reyna, Jimena had slipped out a few minutes prior, when she had noticed no one was paying her attention any more. Jimena set off to ask if she could go over across the street to a friend's house, stating that Benny had stolen her friend

"Why do you wanna know so bad, man?"

"Rey, don't pull that card, we're best friends. By default, I have a right to know!" He gave her a look.

Ouch, she just got friendzoned. She didn't know why it hurt, they were best friends, nothing more, nor nothing less.

"That's faulty reasoning. Come back when you find a better reason." That's right, channel your inner Kiara.

He grumbled, then jumped off the bed and onto the floor where Reyna was sitting on the fuzzy carpet. Reaching his arms out, he began tickling her faster than she could react. The mighty Reyna had been reduced to a giggling and shrieking mess.

"Fine! Fine! I'll tell you, you jealous—"

She was cut off by a round of laughter when his tickling grew faster.

"Okay! Okay! I surrender!" Reyna gasped for breath, "But, you have to answer one of my questions."

He raised an eyebrow, "What question?"

"Who's the prettiest girl in the eighth grade?" Reyna sat up and crossed her arms.

"Y'know I don't got time to be looking at girls."

"No, think about it. Really think about it."

"Off the record? You won't ask any questions? Won't tell nobody? Not none of the guys?"

"Yeah," Reyna's curiosity was piqued. Which girl was it, that he didn't want her telling anyone else?

"It'syou," he spoke so fast, she almost couldn't catch it.

Me? The Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez thinks I'm pretty? And not just pretty, the prettiest girl in the entire ninth grade?! Oh Lord. She blushed, but she didn't know why; luckily her tan skin covered it enough to just see a slight rosy hue color her cheeks.

"For real?"

"Yeah uh for real," he mumbled, looking down at the violet carpet, pretending to be distracted by a loose thread.

"You're such a sweet best friend," she said, reaching out to hug him.

Leaning into her embrace he mumbled, "Yeah, what are best friends for?"

His racing heartbeat made her flummoxed—there was no reason for it to beat so fast.

✰

The next day, things between her and Benny remained as cool as ever, per normal. She didn't know why, but she wanted there to be something lingering in the air.

She sighed as Ham stepped up to bat, her baffling feelings annoying her.

"Hamilton the "Babe" Porter! Longball Porter! Come on DeNunez!" Ham proceeded to point just like Babe Ruth, attempting to call his home run.

Everyone burst into laughter. The idea that Ham could call his home run just like the Babe could was absurd.

Strike one. "You call that pitching?" Ham bellowed as DeNunez laughed. "This is baseball, not tennis!" He practiced his swing.

"Give him a tennis racket, maybe he can hit it then!" Reyna called with a grin on her face.

"Give me sum' to hit!"

"Alright Ham, this is my heater, I dare you to hit it!" Kenny taunted. "You want the heater? Then I'll give it to ya."

"You'll be sorry," Ham mumbled. Ham hit it over to Mr. Mertle's yard.

What the hell, Ham? It had to be Mr. Mertle's yard.

He clapped his hands, and began a slow jog around the bases, obviously spilling with pride over his accomplishment.

He fucking lost them their ball! Now they can't play no more!


	3. kiss it good-bye

"HAM! You idiot! Now we can't play no more!" Benny pulled off the catcher's mask- his irritation with Ham was visible, coming off him like rays.

Kenny, and the rest of the boys began throwing their mitts at him, and Ham raised his arms up in surrender, all the while still jogging. Reyna turned to Benny, in amusement, as the rest of the guys ran behind Ham, striking every inch of him they could reach with their mitts. No one noticed Smalls looking on in a state of quandary, until Squints turned around to see him climb up the fence.

"NO!" Squints yelled, mouth falling wide enough to see his buck-teeth. The rest of the boys followed suit, all running after Smalls. Reyna ran with them, shaking her head, hand coming up to grab the Yankees cap falling off her head. She'd always liked them, ever since she was a kid, and her dad took her to see a Dodger's game against the Yankees. Call it love at first sight, but after that, no team could compare.

Poor Smalls, always getting himself into scrapes.

When they finally reached him—obviously Benny got there first— they lifted him off, and set him on the ground, Reyna choosing to hang back a little.

"Holy crap, you coulda been killed!"

"Yeah, scare the kid on his second day." Reyna muttered.

"Yeah, yeah, truly, what're you doin'?" Yeah-yeah panted out, trying to catch his breath.

"Well, you guys were all leaving, so I just thought I'd—" Smalls really sounded like he was about to cry, Reyna noted.

"If you were thinking, you wouldn't have thought that," Squints rasped out, chewing his gum obnoxiously. Gee, Squints, what wise words.

"You can't go back there, Smalls," Benny said.

"Then how do we get the ball back?" He whined, confusedly.

"We don't."

"We don't."

"It's history."

"It's history."

"Kiss it good-bye."

"Kiss it—"

"Shut up, Tommy," Timmy breathed out, obviously tired of his brother's habit to echo everything he said.

"It's gone, man," Bertram shook his head despondently, "gone."

"Game's over, man. Just get another ball tomorrow," Benny explained. Everyone nodded, as he said, "We'll never see it again."

"Why not?" Smalls wondered.

Everyone except Smalls, looked at each other, the tension in the air was suffocating. Looking back at Smalls, they spoke in deadened unison- Reyna piped in this time. "The beast."

"La famosa bestia," Reyna mumbled, the guys understanding and nodding appreciatively.

"What's that?" Everyone looked at the floor, and back up at Smalls, hands on their hips.

"Smalls, listen," Benny took a step forward, Dodgers cap in his hand, "go over to that fence, real slow, be quiet." Smalls attempted to protest, suddenly becoming scared at the prospect of seeing something unknown, the fear was etched all over his face.

"Just go, and peek through the wall."

"But—but I—I saw something."

"It's okay, just go."

"Go, Smalls," the rest of the boys chimed in. When his footsteps grew louder, everyone shushed him, hands over their mouths.

Smalls came running back, face paler than normal, looking like he saw a ghost.

"Something's got the ball—what was that thing?"

At this, everyone glanced at each other.

"Campout," Reyna suggested, as they all nodded.

✰

"Listen, Jules, I need you to cover for me, please."

"What for? Do you need my help hiding a dead body? Ask DeAndre," Julia responded with a flippant tone.

"The guys and I are sleeping over at the treehouse, and I told my mom that I was sleeping over at yours. If she calls, tell her I'm either in the bathroom or asleep."

"Ah, so the usual. Reyna, you better sleep over at mine later, I'll invite Kiara too." Julia replied excitedly.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world."

"You better come, otherwise, I'll call in DeAndre for a favor, and have him bust lover boy's ass for keeping you to himself."

"Julia!" Reyna gasped, unused to Julia's frank and vulgar tone. Julia snickered at her gasp.

"Alright, bye!"

"Bye!"

✰

"Hey guys! Sorry I'm late, my mom made me put on a jacket, and then she made me do the dishes." Smalls climbed up.

"Awww, your poor little mommy made you do the big bad dishes?"

Reyna rubbed a hand over her face.

"Hey, ya wanna a s'more?" Ham asked.

"Some more of what?"

"No, you wanna s'more?"

"I—haven't had anything yet, so how can I have some more of nothing?"

"You're killing me, Smalls!" Reyna stifled a giggle at their conversation, locking eyes with Benny, who also had a hard time composing himself.

As Ham taught Smalls what a s'more was, and everyone put in their requests for one, Reyna whispered to Benny.

"I don't know how I can deal with them screaming so loudly."

He laughed, "I don't know how you've been putting up with them for so long."

"Okay, be quiet, you guys!" Squints snapped. When it appeared not everyone heeded his words, he spoke again.

"Are you trying to wake it up? It just went to bed!" This immediately garnered the silence both Squints and Reyna had been craving. And the grins on their faces faded to looks of dread.

"What just went to bed?" Smalls spoke up obnoxiously as they all shushed him.

"The beast."

"Oh yeah!"

"Shhh!" Reyna shushed him the loudest. God damn it, she wanted to sleep.

"Now quiet!" Squints turned on his flashlight, resting it right under his face.

"The legend of the beast goes back a long time. Before any of us could even pick up a baseball, back to a place called Mertle's Acres. It all started, about hmm, twenty years ago! When thieves started stealing junk from Mertle's Acres junkyard. So, Mr. Mertle—the guy that used to own the place—got himself this new pup from the dog pound. He fed him whole sides of beef, to turn him to protect the junkyard, and the pup was grateful. It's so the pup grew into the beast, in a few weeks, and it grew big! And it grew mean! With only one thing on its mind—to protect the junkyard and to kill everyone that broke in! And he did! And he liked it! A lot!

"The beast was the most perfect junkyard dog that ever lived. A true killing machine. But after a while, the cops started getting phone calls to report all the missing thieves, the one the beast had killed. It added up to about 120- 173 guys! It's true, they never found a single body, not one. Some people say they all got away, but we all know what really happened, the beast ate them! He ate them, bone and all.

"The beast was too good at his guard dog job, so the police said he had to be retired. My grandpa, Squidman Palledorous, was police chief back then, and he ordered Mr. Mertle turn his backyard into a fortress and chain up the beast, and put him under the house. Where it can never get out to eat children and stuff. That's where he's been for twenty years, and that's where he'll be for the rest of his life. Because Mr. Mertle asked the cops how long he had to keep the beast chained up like a slave, they said until for-ever. For-ever. For-ever. For-ever. And so, the beast sits there, under that lean-to, dreaming a time when he can break the chain and get out, dreaming of a time where he can chase and kill again."

Squints finally set down the light and stopped talking. Reyna nearly fell asleep after being bored to death with that story.

"See, man, we can't go over there. Nobody ever has, nobody ever will."

"One kid did, but nobody ever seen him again," Ham spoke in a solemn tone.

"That ain't true!" DeNunez cried out.

"Yeah it is! He got eaten," Ham solemnly munched on his s'more.

"Nah uh!" Smalls waved a hand in the air. "None of that's true, you guys are just making this up to scare me."

He must be fucking insane, I swear to God. 

"Yeah! Stick your head out that window, look down!" Squints pointed.

"He's down there!"

"Bet he is."

"Whatever goes over that fence, stays there," Ham sighed.

"Becomes a property of the beast. Forever."

✰

When Reyna saw Yeah-yeah practically dragging Squints back, she knew something was up.

"Where you guys been?" Benny asked.

"We've been waiting forever over here," Reyna added.

"Ah, Squints was pervin' a dish," Yeah-yeah said. Reyna wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"I wasn't."

"Yeah, yeah, you were! Your tongue was hanging out your head and you was swoonin' 'Oh Wendy Peffercorn, my darling lover girl!"

"I said, shut up! Got a lot of things on my mind." Boy, was Squints acting like a spoiled teenager or what?

"This pop isn't working, Benny. I'm baking like a toasted cheeser, it's so hot here!" Ham looked like he was dying, arms flailing.

"350 degrees out here, you can't play baseball! You have to call it for the day!" Squints demanded.

"Vote then! Anybody who wants to be a can't-hack-it-pantywaist who wears their momma's bra, raise your hand." All of the guys raised their hands. Reyna sat there with her arms crossed. She already wore a bra, what's the point?

"Fine! Fine! Fine! Be like that. So what are we gonna do?"

The boys all laughed and grinned at each other, "Scam pool honeys!"

"That's it, I'm out, I'll see all y'all later, I'll be at Cruz's house." Reyna threw her hands up, walking away, not before giving Benny a grin and a little flick on his shoulder—an inside joke from a long time ago.

✰

"For real, y'all got banned from the pool?" Reyna asked Benny over the phone in disbelief. She was still at Julia's house, sitting in her room with her, Kiara, and DeAndre.

They had spent most of the day together in her air-conditioned room, talking and laughing and playing games and exchanging gossip.

It had been a fun day, overall.

Reyna laughed as Benny told her the story.

"Rey, you're coming to the sandlot right?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she replied with a grin, fiddling with the cord. After hanging up, she turned to her friends, urging them to come outside and go to the block party with her. It was the fourth of July, after all.

Racing out of Julia's house, with them hot on her tail, she ran towards the tables layered with food. Reyna grabbed a few of her favorite treats, such as homemade churros, sopapilla cheesecake bars, and turon. Behind her, Julia, Kiara and DeAndre picked up their favorites as well, and followed after her. It didn't take long before they reached the sandlot, sitting in the dugout to finish their food.

Brushing her hands off on her jean skirt, she stood up to play.


	4. a fat lie

There was a small glow coming from her oddly clean, white high tops, and the added luminescence provided by the booming fireworks was enough to imagine herself in a stadium, with adoring fans cheering out her name, and the smell of popcorn and cotton candy in the air only contributed to this illusion. She knew Benny felt like this all the time, and everyone knew he would end up in the Major Leagues one day.

As her best friend hit another home run, everyone stopped to watch the sky with awestruck expressions like normal kids whilst he pounded the bases; only her eyes were on him in that moment, a small smile on her face. He was insanely good, and had a real affinity for baseball; he often told her it was his life. And she would say back that he better get her free tickets to all of his games when he got drafted to play for the Dodgers. To that he'd say that she better not miss a single game, and her reply would always be that she wouldn't miss it for the world.

✰

"We got a game against Phillips tomorrow. Noon." They were sitting in her room; it was around six in the afternoon, the sky was turning a pink color, with hues of yellow and orange, as seen from her window, the glow washing over their faces. Reyna had just gotten back from her girl's day with Julia and Kiara. Julia's mom had taken them out, Kiara being a little on the poorer side, and Reyna's parents being busy.

"Damn, what'd y'all do to mess with him?" She asked, from her cross-legged position across from him on her white fluffy carpet. She had an affinity for clean things, and her room had a light colored scheme. The furniture was all white—the table, the bed, the dresser, the chair, and the carpet. The walls were a light grey, and so were the throw pillows, and her bedspread.

"The usual," Benny shrugged, leaning against the back of her bed, "He insulted us, we insulted him, Ham had the last word, he didn't like it, challenged us to a game that we'll beat him at."

Reyna snorted, her freshly manicured hand coming up to rub her tired eyes, abruptly halting before they touched her face. At Benny's confused look, she explained, "Forgot I had mascara and eyeliner on. But go on, I wanna hear what Ham said." She scooted closer to him, her favorite black skirt brushing against the ground as she sat next to him.

"There was crap face, the 'you like eating wheaties with your momma's toe jam,' puss sniffer, and more," He listed them off his fingers, one by one. "The one that got Phillips to really shut up was the 'you play ball like a girl.'"

Reyna yawned, resting her head on his shoulder, "'m not gonna mention how sexist it was, 'cause you already know but like, still." Both of their faces were inflamed by the close proximity they shared, but neither said anything, hoping the other would.

"Rey, wipe the makeup off your face if you're gonna sleep on my shoulder. You're gonna ruin your skin, you've lectured me so many times to remember to help you remember."

She lazily smiled, before getting up and walking to the bathroom. She sneezed along the way, each sneeze louder than the last.

He spent the time she took in the bathroom staring at the string of pictures on her wall. He recognized himself in around half of them; he sighed. He was only her best friend, and she'd probably go on to find other guys who weren't as in love with baseball as he was. But the truth was that he was as serious about her as he was about baseball, and it scared him.

Reyna came back in with a lazy grin and in a pair of oversized grey sweatpants and a black t-shirt, and he felt his heart skip a beat. His breath hitched; it had hitched twice in that hour—the first time was when she opened the door in her skirt and white sleeveless turtleneck. He knew the turtleneck had to be made of very thin material, otherwise she could not bear to wear it in the heat of summer.

Sitting next to her best friend, and leaning her head on his shoulder, Reyna asked, "Since the game starts at noon, you gonna let us sleep in for once in our lives?"

He chuckled, a low sound, "Maybe. Or maybe I'll make you wake up even earlier just so we can really kick ass."

"No fair," she pouted, "We'll already beat them. The only reason they the ones on a league is cause they rich white ass boys whose daddies paid their way for them." She fell into a coughing fit.

"Maybe so, but a little extra practice never hurt nobody."

"That's a lie, Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez, and you know it."

They both laughed, recalling the time that he had sprained his wrist, doing extra practice, and she had sprained her ankle, sliding down bases for too long.

✰

"Rey?" He stood next to her bed—it was eleven thirty, and she still wasn't awake.

"Benny?" Her eyes were half open, and her voice weary. He pressed a hand to her forehead; she had a burning fever.

"I'll call off the game, since you can't play." He was worried. No, more than worried. How do you get sick during summer? And without any signs? There were no signs of it yesterday. But, she was coughing and sneezing, and she was tired very quickly. It was unlike her to want to sleep so early. She slept late and woke up late.

"No you won't," her weary voice took on a determined note, reaching for his hand and grabbing it, "you, Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez are going to go to that game, and win it. For me, at least?"

She squeezed his hand, a small enough gesture to his cheeks to heat up. She noticed, but didn't think anything of it.

"Alright," he swallowed nervously. "I'll do it for you."

"That'd be enough," she gave him a faint smile before falling back asleep.

✰

After Benny had paid for the rest of the guy's tickets at the carnival, to celebrate their win, he set off straight to Reyna's house to check on her.

He found her sitting in her window seat, staring at the stars sprinkled across the night sky, hugging her knees. "What are you doing here?" she asked without bothering to look at him.

"Wanted to see you," He spoke truthfully, still standing in the doorway.

"Don't know why," She scoffed.

"Aw come on," he said as he walked forwards and took a seat next to her, "don't be like that."

She didn't answer but looked at him, and he could clearly see the bags under her eyes that she tried to conceal.

"Shouldn't you be out at the fair with them?" She looked away from him.

"I'm right where I'm supposed to be."

"Yeah, cooped up inside to deal with my burden." A burden? Since when?

"Who told you you were a burden?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Jus' seems like it," she shrugged and still refused to look at him.

"That's a fat lie, Reyna Camila Gonzalez, and you know it," he used the same words she had said to him earlier.

"What? You wanna know how weak the girl you call your best friend really is?" Her voice wavered, and she finally looked at him, but her eyes were filled with tears threatening to rain down her cheeks. His fists clenched. Who the hell would do that? She's literally perfect, what the hell?


	5. no i don't dig

"God, Rodriguez, how can you be this oblivious?" He wasn't entirely sure how he'd ended up talking to DeAndre Carter in a secluded corner outside Vincent's drugstore late in the afternoon after practice, but there he was.

"Don't know what you mean, Carter." He muttered, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans and averting his gaze from DeAndre's face.

"Look, I know Reyna pretty well, considering her older brother's my best friend." He didn't say anything, having already known that.

"Do I have to spell it out for you? I mean I knew you was a jock, considering you play for the highschool's team, but I didn't know you were a dumb jock." Benny gave him a hard stare—DeAndre was well overstepping some boundaries that shouldn't be breached—and defensively folding his arms across his chest. DeAndre looked him up and down in response, still leaning against the wall.

"She likes you, you dig?" DeAndre said slowly like he was dumb.

He wanted to reply, that no, he didn't dig.

"She either doesn't know it yet, or doesn't want to admit it, but she likes you. Sooner or later, one of you'll have to do something about it."

Again, Benny wasn't sure how what happened yesterday led to this.

Albeit, it was rare for Reyna to cry so hard and be wounded so deeply like that, but he wasn't sure how any of them liking each other fit in. She had finally confessed as to what had happened, and he had given her a much needed hug, and let her cry into his shirt—which had been ruined, but he hadn't really noticed.

His mind had been too preoccupied with figuring out who the two girls who had ruined Reyna's day were. He had vaguely heard about them in school. He supposed they were popular—they certainly looked and acted the part—but he wasn't too fond of how they always seemed to giggle in the presence of certain people on the baseball team with him, namely Phillips.

Somehow, the two of them were on the team together and hadn't killed each other, but Benny knew that it was because Phillips knew that he was good, and him being on the team was out of his hands.

"Look, man, I don't know what you mean by that and why it matters." He shrugged, "Two skanks bothered her and you're sayin' sumn' about how we like each other? I dunno know man, but seems like they don't add up."

DeAndre looked to the sky, "God, what did I do to have to deal with your oblivious asses?" Smoothing out his brow, he pinched the bridge of his nose as he explained, "Look, those two skanks, they like you man. And they said those things to Reyna because she's the only girl you hang around and they feel threatened by the competition."

Benny gaped at him. He thought they liked Phillips, because their giggling drastically increased when their proximity to him increased. Ah, shit.

DeAndre shook his head, glancing at his watch, his eyes widening drastically. "Shit, man, nice chat, gotta split."

Benny stood there, contemplating what DeAndre said for what seemed like minutes, but in reality was hours.

✰

Reyna was sitting in Raymond's, the best diner in town, absentmindedly twirling the straw of her half empty root beer float. It was a Saturday and she hadn't shown up at the Sandlot, preferring to wallow in her loneliness.

"The hell are you doing here?" He stood behind her chair, her back to him. She urged herself to keep calm, but her heart's sporadic beat was anything but calm.

"Oh my God," she whined, knowing that voice perfectly well.

"Can't a girl drink a root beer float in peace and quiet, without someone coming to ask her where she's been all day?" she kept up a facade of annoyance, but truthfully, she wasn't anywhere close to being irritated at all.

"Shut up, Reyna. You had us all worried sick," He took a seat across from her, giving her a hard stare. She would be lying if she said her heart beat didn't speed up just the tiniest bit.

"Stop lying, we both know that none of y'all was worried. Besides, you coulda come over next door and seen how I was doin' before tryna track me down all over town after practice was over." She downed the half empty glass, and wiped the residue on her lips, refusing to meet Benny's searching gaze—it was for the preservation of her dignity.

"I came to your house, you weren't there, and Felix had no fucking clue where you went. He's near Dottie's right now looking for you with half the gang," Benny said, referring to Dottie's Barbershop and the cluster shops surrounding it.

Reyna sighed wearily, "And where's the rest?"

She never wanted them to come look for her, she was just fine by herself.

"At the park, lookin for you with your friends, an' your sittin here, downing root beer floats after another."

If his clipped tone was any indication or warning that he was seething with anger, she didn't bother paying attention. It wasn't as if she couldn't make herself care, she just didn't want to.

"So?" she shrugged, feigning indifference, "It's not like I matter that much."

She didn't see how it mattered to them that she wasn't at the sandlot. They could just continue on playing without her, after all she was only just a player, easily replaceable.

"Yes you do!" He slammed his fist on the table, "Goddamnit, can't you see? You're so much more than just an alright ball player!"

She let out a watery laugh, wiping her previously dry eyes with her wrist, "I'm better than alright. How many people can say that they can keep up with Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez?"

✰

Reyna was in outfield with Scott, mitts at the ready. Everyone else bent forward, hands on their knees, except for DeNunez and Benny. 

They were using a brand new baseball, and no one was prepared for what happened next.

Kenny wound up, and pitched. Benny hit it, busting the guts out of the baseball, the inner part going straight for Smalls. The outside flew through the air with the momentum from Benny's swing.

Everyone gathered around the busted guts of the hall.

"Bitchin'."

Murmurs of disbelief reached Reyna's ears, as she whistled.

"Nah it ain't!" Benny responded, irritated. He was being quite unreasonable, Reyna thought. I mean, he fucking just bust the guts out of the ball, at fifteen years old, and he's mad that they can't play no more? God, was he stupid sometimes. 

But she liked his face and he was hella good at baseball and he was super sweet and he made her laugh a lot and ugh he was so cute with his sister and oh—

Oh. She liked him, didn't she?

"Come on Benny, man, maybe two or three guys in history ever busted the guts out of a ball," Squints attempted to reason with him.

"Must be an omen," Smalls spoke up. Hmm, it could be an omen. If the ball got its guts busted out, then maybe that could symbolise sumn' else getting its guts busted out, maybe sumn' ending up messed up or—

"All's it mean is that we can't play no more. I mean it's only 12 o'clock, and I just ruined the whole day for us."

"No, you didn't. That's the most amazing thing we ever saw." Kenny spoke up.

"Kenny's right, man," Reyna said, a small grin on her face.

"Anybody got any money?" Benny asked, looking around.

Mumbles of dissent reached his ears.

"Then it ain't okay, cause we can't play no more," Benny protested.

"Yeah we can." Smalls spoke, still staring at the ball before him.

"What? You got ninety-eight extra cents lying around at home, Smalls?" Benny asked in disbelief.

"No, but I got a ball."

"Go get it! Jeez!" Everyone yelled simultaneously.


	6. that wasn't my ball

SMALLS came running back with a baseball in his hands, frantically yelling, "Guys! I got it! I got the ball!"

He hands it over to Benny, who says, "Bitchin'. Your ball, your ups. Here you go."

"You're up!" Ham calls out.

Strike one.

Smalls hits the ball on the second pitch, and Benny runs after it. He comes back defeatedly. It was his first home run, Reyna observed. Smalls jogged all the way to second base but then stopped in horror, slowly approaching the fence, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Uh, hey, Smalls, third base is that way."

"Yeah! Nice hit, Smalls, nice hit!"

Some more yelling, until Ham ran up, "You forgot to turn.You go to third base!"

Reyna wasn't far behind him, Yankees cap in hand.

"The hell is he doing?"

"Maybe the shock of his first home run was too much for him." No, that couldn't be the case. It had to do with the ball, somehow. It's the only reason he would be staring at the fence like he accidentally sold his right hand.

"Smalls? Smalls."

He turned around, "We gotta get that ball back." His desperation was clear, and a bead of sweat had formed on his forehead, his face flustered.

"Oh, yeah right."

"Good one, Smalls."

The gang laughed it off as a joke, Reyna included. There was no possible way they could get the ball back, unscathed. The beat would kill them all. And they'd be another story kids would tell around campfires.

"Don't worry about it, man, just get another ball," Benny waved it off.

"No, you don't understand," he pleaded, distraught.

"Sure we do. You feel bad, you hit a homer, now we can't play no more."

"I don't think that's it, man, maybe it has to do sum' with that ball. Smalls, did you happen to swipe a ball made of gold?" Reyna narrowed her eyes at him.

"No, you don't understand, that wasn't my ball!" He looked close to crying at the moment, his face flushed a bright red, his voice cracking.

"What do you mean, that wasn't your ball?" Squints pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, eyes narrowed at Smalls.

"It was my step-dad's. I stole it from his trophy room. It was a present or something. Somebody gave it to him. But we gotta get it back. He's going to kill me!"

"Did he happen to get it signed by Mickey Mantle or Joe DiMaggio or Hank Aaron or sum'?" Reyna placed her hands on her hips. The gang nodded at her words.

"I don't know," he mumbled.

"Listen to me, Smalls, it's a matter of life and death! Where did ya old man git that ball?" Squints demanded.

"What? I don't know—some lady gave it to him, why?"

"A lady?" The guys and Reyna all looked at each other in confusion.

"She even signed her name on it. Some lady named—Ruth. Baby Ruth."

Mierda. Scott Smalls really had no brain! The ball was signed by fucking Babe Ruth, holy crap.

"BABE RUTH?!" Everyone rushed towards the fence in a frenzy. They all looked over the fence, as the Beast clamped the ball down with its huge paw. Screaming in fear, they all jumped down and ran a good six feet away from the fence, pushing and shoving each other out of the way, in a craze.

"La famosa bestia strikes again," Reyna mumbled, resigned to the fact they'd never get the ball back unless one of them could pluck enough courage to ask Mr. Mertle. But even then, what could Mr. Mertle do against a 200lb beast? Even Reyna herself was only 100lbs. The Beast would easily crush her if it came down to it.

"You're as dead as a doornail, Smalls!"

"You're as dead as a doornail, Smalls!"

"You mean to tell me, that you went home and swiped a ball that was signed by, Babe Ruth, and you came out here and actually played with it?!" Timmy demanded, wanting to know how foolish anyone could be to actually do that.

"And actually played with it?!"

"Yeah, yeah, but I was gonna bring it back," Scott protested, his voice growing higher each second the more he attempted to defend himself.

"But it was signed by Babe Ruth!"

"Babe Ruth died in the forties, Smalls. The forties!" Reyna added, a little hysterically. It's not like that ball was worth anything.

"Yeah, yeah you keep telling me that—who is she?" Smalls demanded, clearly hysterical.

"She?" Reyna mouthed, incredulously.

The gang all looked at each other, disbelief written on their faces, as clear as day. They seemed to all collectively read each other's minds, as their eyes widened, and smacked their foreheads in unison.

How could he be so clueless? They all wondered.

"What?!" Ham cried out, shock painted across his face. "What?!"

"The Sultan of Swat," Kenny enunciated.

"The King of Crash," Bertram, spoke as if trying to persuade Smalls into remembering.

"The Colossus of Clout!"

"The Colossus of Clout!"

"Babe Ruth!" They all gestured.

Benny stood in the background, covering his face in embarrassment and disbelief. It wasn't obvious, but Reyna could tell. She had been sort of trying to avoid him, the entire day. It was childish of her, she admitted, but she wasn't sure how to act normally.

"The Great Bambino!" Ham spoke slowly and loudly like he would talk to someone who didn't speak english.

Smalls was suddenly hit with realization. "Oh my God! You mean that's the same guy?!" He tugged at his hair.

"Yes!"

"Smalls. Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player that ever lived. Y'know, people say he was less than a God, but more than a man," Benny tried to explain.

"Like a demigod," Reyna added, glancing at him, before quickly looking away.

"Y'know, like Hercules or sum'." He glanced at her while she pretended to check her shoes for dirt. Reyna remembered that day in class when they learned about Greek Gods. When someone asked, "What would you call someone that's more than a man, but less than a God?"

She had answered, "A demigod, y'know, like Hercules. Like how they describe Babe Ruth. He's like Hercules cause he's not a God but he's surely more than a man."

And Benny had smiled at her.

"That ball—that you just gave to the Beast—is worth, well, more than your whole life, man," He snapped his attention back to Smalls, a sort of hopeless expression crossing his face.

"I don't feel so good," His knees buckled, and he dropped to the floor looking constipated.

"Give him air, give him air."

Everyone stepped forward, fanning him with their baseball caps. Reyna stood with her shoulder pressed against Benny, and she could feel him glance at her, but kept her eyes trained on Smalls, sincerely praying he wouldn't notice her eyes darting to him.

"We have to get that ball back."

"Aight, when does your old man get home from work?" Benny asked Smalls.

"He's gone out on business, outta town. But he could be back. Anytime."

"Aight, find out when." Benny took control of the situation, like he always did. Reyna couldn't help but smile unconsciously. Her best friend would set the world on fire one day. He'd become as much a legend as Babe Ruth.

"And you guys, spread out, and look for bottles. Then cash 'em in. We need ninety-eight cents. We gotta buy us a ball."

"Yeah!"


	7. not involving murder

AFTER mustering ninety-eight cents, they bought a ball from Vincent's Drugstore.

"Give me sum to write with!"

"I got it, I got a pencil!" Smalls said.

"Not a pencil!"

"I have a pen! Give him the pen!"

Hastily, Benny scrawled out 'Babe Ruth,' in the neatest cursive handwriting he could. His handwriting was neater than Reyna's, but their teachers would often mix their handwriting for the other's.

"Babe—"

"Baby Ruthie?"

"Babe Ruth doesn't write like that—"

"Uhh I don't know, aight guys?

"Yeah, man, that looks pretty crappy."

"It doesn't matter what it looks like, his mom's never gonna know the difference. This is to buy us some time, dorks," He explained.

✰

They had thought that the ball that Benny had busted the guts out of meant sumn' amazing was going to happen. All it meant was that Smalls' was dead.

"Hey! I got it!" Smalls exclaimed. Everyone looked up at him, eyebrows raised. "How about we go over, knock on the door, and ask Mr. Mertle if he can get it—"

"Are you out of your mind?! Mr. Mertle's the meanest ol' man that ever lived! He's the one that made the Beast eat that kid! That's not an option Smalls," Squints pushed up his glasses, "Forget about it!"

"Oh okay, uh, sorry, I will," Smalls mumbled, a little nervous.

"Let's just look out the window," Squints suggested.

"Good idea."

If I had a week, I couldn't list how bad of an idea that is.

Reyna rolled her eyes but cast them towards the window, her eyes watching the scraps left behind in the yard. The sun's rays danced across each fallen object, casting shadows in certain ways. There were several thick chains, with age-old rust on them. There were old bones, the size of Reyna's arms, lying around the rusted chains, in a heap. There was even a wrecked car lying there, its baby blue paint ruined.

The Beast let out a low growl, and sent an old volleyball flying.

Everyone screamed, and ran back. Reyna rolled her eyes again. She was sleep deprived to the point she was having none of anyone's shit today.

"Well, he's there!"

"We're on his territory now," Ham spoke solemnly.

"Anybody got any bright ideas?" Benny asked, looking round at everyone, his gaze lingering at Reyna for a moment longer. In the back of his mind, he wondered, what did he do wrong? What did he do to make her avoid him like the plague?

Reyna raised her hand.

Benny barely glanced at her before pointedly saying, "Not involving murder?"

Reyna put her hand down.

✰

They all thought about it real hard. But they had no idea what the hell they were going to do. Except Reyna. But no, according to Benny, murder was not a solution.

The gang started off very primitive at first. They started off with an easy to build contraption — made by Smalls and Timmy, of course. It was basically a cardboard periscope. Ham created a hole in the bottom of the fence, and Squints manned the periscope.

"Go," whispered Squints.

Ham tentatively pushed the stick out—slow and steady—through the aperture he had created. Everyone else was crowded behind him, nervous and strangely excited.

"Farther," Squints mouthed.

Ham pushed it out more, just till it had grazed the discarded ball.

"Just a little bit farther," Squints gestured.

"That's what she said," Reyna whispered. Benny bumped her shoulder with his, barely able to conceal his grin. His eyes twinkled as she smiled up at him, lost in the moment until the Beast lifted its great big paw, and crushed the stick. Squints screamed.

Everyone screamed in terror as the Beast bit the stick and tugged on it. They all held on to Ham, pulling him backward. When they had managed to retrieve the stick, it was less than half its original size.

✰

The next day, they decided to upgrade. This time, they used a metal pot, purloined from one of their mother's kitchens, and a long metal stick thing.

"Guard the right, a little," Squints whispered.

"Guard the right a little bit," Ham relayed to Smalls.

"Tell the back to move to the right."

"Just a little bit farther," Squints mouthed, gesturing.

Honestly, why someone with glasses was the eyes of this operation still confused her.

"Oh, there it is, I see it. Turn it. Turn it."

"Almost," Squints dragged out the word. 'You got it," Squints nodded at them, "Pull it back."

"I got it!"

"Guys, pull." Out of nowhere, the Beast's massive paw crushed the pot. Everyone screamed in terror, and Reyna yawned.

"Oh my God!" Ham yelled.

"Pull it back!" Squints yelled at the rest of them. They all screamed as they toppled on each other, experiencing true fear as the Beast tore up the metal like paper.

The Beast threw their mangled contraption back across the yard. Everyone stared at the remains of their metal contraption as the Beast growled.

"I think we seriously underestimated the Beast," Timmy spoke.

"Underestimated everything. Its intelligence, superiority."

✰

"Power."

"Okay, guys, almost ready. We're connecting power, now," Bertam explained.

"Power connected."

This time, they were using a vacuum like device to suck the ball up.

"Initiate: retrieval suction," Squints whispered to Tommy.

"Initiate: retrieval suction."

"Prepare to initiate retrieval suction, number one," Timmy told Ham.

"Okay. Get ready."

"Guys! Initiate retrieval suction, number one!"

"Initiating retrieval suction, now!" Bertram turned on the power.

Benny, Ham, and Kenny all held on to the device the gang built after putting their brains together. Reyna fell asleep for the majority of it, her head lolling on Benny's shoulder, as he glanced at her every now and then to make sure she didn't wake up.

"Fire, number two."

"Firing number two. Now," Bertram said, firing another power source.

This time, even Yeah-yeah had to hold on to the device.

Why are they so weak? Reyna wondered.

"Fire number three."

"Number three. Now," Smalls pushed the power more.

The boys continued to struggle with the device.

"You got it, pull it up!" Squints smiled.

Timmy joined in to help them, and Reyna was sitting next to Smalls, helping with the power. The Beast bit the connecting part of the contraption, pinching the pipe shut. The glove and the ball dropped to the ground.

"What's going on, Squints?" Ham called, worried.

"The pipe, it pinched shut!"

"Turn it off!"

"I can't! It's blowing up! It's blowing up," Smalls exclaimed, hysterically.

"Guys, the pipe is locked! I don't know about you, but I'm getting the heck out!"


End file.
